Pride volleyball players Olivia Gough and Liz Widenhouse were named to the USA South All-Conference Team on Wednesday. Gough earned USA South Rookie of the Year honors in addition to Honorable Mention recognition. Widenhouse was selected to the USA South Third Team.
Gough appeared in 28 matches and 100 sets during her freshman campaign. For the year, she averaged 2.84 kills, 1.92 digs and 3.30 points per set. Her kill and point per set averages currently rank tenth and 12th in the league, respectfully. In conference-only matches this fall, Gough ranked in the top-ten in both the kill and point per set categories.
Widenhouse also played a key role in The Pride’s offensive success this season. The sophomore led the conference with 3.86 kills per set while contributing 43 service aces, 207 digs and 23 total blocks. Overall, she appeared in 29 matches and 106 sets on the year.
Also earning recognition from the conference was junior libero Danielle Simpson, who was honored on the All-Sportsmanship Team. Simpson finished the regular season ranked fifth in the USA South in digs per set with 4.60.
“I know that Liz, Olivia and Danielle are worthy of All-Conference recognition, however with the team finishing 9th I was not sure they would get it,” said head coach Jean Lojko. “I am very excited for Liz and Olivia and the team that they received Third Team and Rookie of the Year honors. I think it shows that we do have the talent to win in this conference and to watch out for us next season. Liz and Olivia were our ‘go to’ players all season. Both have tremendous athletic ability and hit with lots of force and accuracy. I look forward to what they will bring to our team next year.”